This Day in Hockey History – May 9, 2006 – One-Liners with Lupul

As the saying goes, there’s no “I” in “team.” However, after the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Colorado Avalanche on May 9, 2006, most attributed the 4-3 victory on one man alone, Joffrey Lupul. He scored all four Anaheim goals as the first NHL player to score four goals in one playoff game that included an overtime game-winner among them. As amazing as this feat was, Lupul relied heavily on his linemates, Dustin Penner and Todd Marchant. For this game, at least, the Ducks had a one-line show.

In the 2006 postseason, the Ducks had already defeated the Calgary Flames (4-3) in the quarter-finals. They then shutout Colorado in the first two games of the semi-finals. In Game 1 on May 5, they won 5-0, with Lupul scoring the fourth goal on a power play in the final seconds of the second period. Game 2, held May 7, featured a 3-0 shutout in which Lupul scored the final goal (assisted by Penner and Marchant).

Game 3 was held at the sold-out Pepsi Center, filled with 18,007 fans. Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov’s shutout streak was finally broken when Dan Hinote scored Colorado’s first goal of the series at 19:33 of the first period. Bryzgalov’s streak had lasted 249:15, then only second to George Hainsworth’s streak of 270:08 set in 1930 for Montreal. Bryzgalov shrugged, “Someday it was going to happen. It just happened to be today. Nobody can play hockey without giving up a goal for the rest of their life.”

Lupul scored the only goal of the second period, at 9:02, with Penner’s assistance. With the score tied, the opponents went back and forth throughout the third period. Colorado took the lead at 4:47. Then Lupul and his line tied and took the lead about halfway through. At 8:54, Marchant assisted Lupul in snapping a wrist shot into the net. Almost two minutes later, Penner assisted Lupul in “another wicked wrist shot . . . that beat Theodore on the stick side.” Lupul said of the play, “I was yelling for it. I think he [Penner] was looking for me today after I had a couple. He made a nice drop pass. I got a little fortunate on that one.” Unfortunately for Anaheim, Rob Blake tied up the score at 13:35, forcing the game into overtime.

The overtime session was winding down, when at 16:30, Penner intercepted a pass and fed the puck to Lupul. From Lupul’s shot, the puck snuck through the legs of goalie Jose Theodore. The Ducks had won thanks to 21-year-old Lupul making four goals off of his six shots. According to Lupul, “They just went in tonight. I got a couple of good passes. And some breaks.” He went on, “Sometimes, you feel like, ‘Is it ever going to go in?’ Tonight was a feeling like, ‘Am I ever going to miss?’” Still, he enthused, “It’s awesome. I’ll remember this as long as I live.”

The last time an NHL player had scored four goals in a playoff game was Theo Fleury in 1995. Lupul became the first to do so with an overtime game-winner. Lupul mused, “I don’t know if I’d ever dream of four goals in a playoff game, including an overtime winner.” Penner goaded, “He’s going to have to do it again. . . . I think he’s capable of it.” Their captain, Scott Niedermayer, commented, “To get four goals like he did . . . we needed them all. Those nights are great when they happen.”

Along with Lupul’s four goals, Penner had three assists while their center, Marchant, had one. Rookie Penner said of their line, “We mesh together pretty well. We feed off each other. We have a sniper, a solid, two-way center, and I try to be a big body down low and hold onto the puck.” Veteran Marchant commented, “I’ve been on lines where we’ve had that chemistry, and you just know where the guys are going to be and make those plays and know their tendencies. And I just hope it continues.” The Ducks wrapped up their sweep in Game 4 on May 11. Thanks to Marchant’s two goals, Penner’s goal and assist, and Lupul’s assist, Anaheim won 4-1. They went on to the Conference finals, which they lost 4-1 to the Edmonton Oilers. The team’s top scorers throughout the playoffs included all three. Coming in second (one point behind Teemu Selanne), Marchant had 13 points (3G, 10A). Tying with their captain for third, Lupul had 11 points (9G, 2A). Finally, Penner (3G, 6A) and two others all had 9 points. The very next season, the Ducks won their only Stanley Cup championships to date.

Additional Sources:

• Helene Elliott and Eric Stephens, “Lupul Hits Command Key,” Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2006, pp. D1 and D6.
• Mike Commito, Hockey 365: Daily Stories from the Ice (Toronto: Dundurn, 2018), kindle edition.